Second US$7.3B audit report should have been made public already – Jagdeo
Apr 20, 2025
Kaieteur News- Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo on Thursday questioned why the final audit report on ExxonMobil’s US$7.3 billion in expenses, which was cleared for release since November last year, has not yet been made public.
Despite Commissioner General of the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), Godfrey Statia, ordering the release of the audit report incurred between the period 2018 to 2020, no reason has been provided on why it is yet to be released.
Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo
Jagdeo, at his weekly press conference held at Freedom House, in response to a question by Kaieteur News on the audit said, “I don’t know if GRA… this is the second audit? Why it’s not being released because we don’t have a problem. It’s in the public domain already, I think some people have it,” Jagdeo said.
“There is nothing strange about it, GRA has cleared it. I don’t know why it has not been released,” he added.
Notwithstanding Jagdeo’s statement, checks by Kaieteur News for the report proved futile. “I will check why they have not done the same,” Jagdeo committed.
The audit in question was conducted by VHE Consulting, a local consortium made up of Ramdihal & Haynes Inc., Eclisar Financial, and Vitality Accounting & Consultancy Inc.
A preliminary version of the report, titled “Initial Audit Report for the Stabroek Block Cost Recovery Audit – 2018 to 2020,” was published on the Ministry of Natural Resources’ website on April 12, 2024. This 135-page document is currently the only version accessible to the public.
However, comparisons between the second audit and the first—conducted by British firm IHS Markit and covering Exxon’s 1999–2017 expenses—have raised concerns. While the IHS Markit audit provided detailed breakdowns of major cost categories such as supply vessels, drill rigs, subsea infrastructure (SURF), helicopter services, and waste management, these crucial details are notably absent from the second audit report by VHE.
Audits such as these are vital in ensuring that Guyana is not overcharged for services or materials by ExxonMobil and its subcontractors. Under the current oil agreement, ExxonMobil can recover up to 75% of monthly revenues to cover its expenses, with the remaining 25% split between the company and Guyana as profit.
Industry experts have warned that without transparency and proper scrutiny, the country risks losing valuable revenue due to inflated or unverified costs.
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